Cecile's Pain
by BloodFireAlchEMisT
Summary: NEW AND IMPROVED! FINALLY edited! When Lloyd's family comes to visit, he is stuck between their views and his finally realized feelings for Cecile. Rated M for later chapters, sexual situations, and cussing.
1. The Arrival

**"Oh Lloyd!" the scream resonated throughout the lab. Lloyd snapped his head around****, looking in the direction of the voice. Cecile, surprised, stared in amazement as Lloyd spread his arms, giving one of his laughs, and slid into the arms of a woman only a couple inches taller than herself. A man, surprisingly taller than Lloyd, followed and smiled. His lavender hair had shocks of silvery-grey through it and his handsome smile had Cecile a bit flustered. The woman, however, had Lloyd's eyes and facial structure, both bony and sophisticated. She was slighty taller than Cecile herself and thin, with a few wrinkles around her eyes and a strict mouth. Lloyd caught her gaze and smiled, cocking his head.**

**"A****h Cecile! Come over here for a moment won't you?"she swallowed but obeyed. Lloyd reached out and put his arm around her shoulders, gently tugging her close.**

**"Mother, Father. This is ****my assistant, Cecile Croomy. The woman that I've told you about." Cecile blinked, still surprised even though she figured their relations. She conjured up a sincere smile, bowing to them, as another man stepped into the room. Lloyd's face faltered for a moment before his smile lit up his face once more.**

**"Ranku! My brother! ****How have you been?" Lloyd shook his hand before hugging his brother to him. "Cecile. Let me have the honor of introducing my younger brother. Earl Ranku Asplund." Ranku looked from Cecile to his brother and back, then broke into a grin.**

**"My,My. ****Brother, you ****_dog_****, you have done well for yourself. With your job ****_and_**** your woman." Lloyd smirked and glared at his brother as Ranku bowed over Cecile's hand in a gentalmanly kiss. Cecile flushed and smiled a bit nervously. **

**"Better than you'll ever d, I must say****." Their parents stood in the background, his mother twitching a bit at the attention her sons were giving to the young lady. Cecile noticed the sour look on her face and raised her eyebrows, slightly uneasy as she gazed back between the brothers. Their father finally cleared his throat to gain their attention and smiled as they turned to him.**

**"Lloyd, I would like to take you and your brother outside for a cigar and ****a good catch-up. You may come out whenever you are ready darling." his wife gave a stiff nod as he kissed her cheek and turned towards the door, his boys following. Lloyd blinked, stopping, before sweeping back towards Cecile.**

**"****Cecile!" She looked at him before squeaking and turning the other way, trying to avoid him.**

**"No!" she clenched her eyes closed and covered them with her hands. Lloyd's family froze and ****turned to watch them closely. Lloyd just laughed and pryed her hands away from her face, turning her towards him. Once they were pulled away, he bent a bit to meet her eyes and did what she hated most. He tweaked her nose between his fingers. Her nose scrunched up and slowly opened an eye. He was using his most pleading look. She groaned and shok her head, swatting gently at his hands.**

**"That's not fair! You know I don't know how to say no to that look you jackass!" Lloyd grinned and, in his sweetest voice said;**

**"Cecile, would you mind staying with my mother until she's ready to come outside?" Cecile ****stared at him for a moment before sighing softly. Lloyd smiled victoriously and spun before her, lab coat fanning out as he stopped, facing his family with hands on his hips. He was oblivious to his family's wide eyes as they stared in wonder at an open disrespect of an Earl.**  
><strong>"There we are! You have someone to keep you company mother." They all swept out of the room, leaving Cecile and Lloyd's mother alone in an uncomfortable silence before Lloyd's mother spoke.<strong> 

**"You shouldn't be allowed near my precious son." Cecile sto****pped what she was doing and turned her transfixed stare** **on the woman, watching her carefully as she stood in confusion.**

"E-excuse me?" she wasn't sure that she had heard her correctly.

"You heard me girl. My son needs someone of nobility, wealth, and power. Not some average, pathetic excuse for a Britannian like yourself. You need to learn your place and respect those who are above you." Lady Asplund she turned her nose into the air and stalked out after her sons and husband. Cecile stood dumbfounded, her files slipping from her limp grasp and onto the cold, concrete floor.


	2. Hurtful words

**Cecile ****had no clue as to why Lloyd's mother didn't like her. She literally hadn't said a word to her since her arrival and Lady Asplund had spoken to her as if she were a child! She slowly retrieved her folders from the floor made her way towards the door leading outside. Striding to where she was able to peek around the corner, she spotted Lloyd's family right around the corner and decided that she would hang back a bit.**

**"What is**** wrong with her mother?" that was Lloyd's voice. She could find him in a dark place with her eyes closed if he just kept talking to her.**

**"Lloyd dear," his mother's voice was almost a purr, "She's not worthy of working in any respectable lab. Especially when it's one run by you.**** I mean look at her. No parents, lives alone in an apartment(not even a home!), and her meek frame can't be sturdy enough to be of much help to you." Cecile puffed her cheeks out, eyebrow twitching. She expected Lloyd to laugh if off and speak on her behalf. He did laugh…but not for the reason she had hoped.**

**"You know mother," he star****ted, "I've never really looked it that way, but now that you mention it she is quite plain and not really fit to be around royalty." Cecile's heart broke into thousands of tiny pieces and fell at her feet, her eyes wide and souless.****  
><strong>**"She's a very good assistant though." like it would make it up to her if he'd known that she had been listening! The sound of flesh on flesh broke her from her revere.**

**"Ranku!" Lloyd's mother and father spoke at the same time. ****She heard Ranku growl a bit and peeked in time to see him grab Lloyd's collar.**

**"Lloyd you insensitive jackass! If you****'re as fucking smart as you say, you would have known that Miss Cecile is right around the corner and that she heard every word that you just said!" Silence engulfed the area before the sounds of quick, clipped footsteps coming in her direction reached her ears. She straightened herself and picked up the folder she didn't know she had dropped. That's how Ranku had known that she was there! She must have dropped the folder,numbly, in shock at Lloyd's words. The steps rounded the corner and she smiled weakly at her boss. Lloyd stood in shock, one hand on the doorjamb, the other hanging lifelessly at his side. His eyes looked scared, his cheek red from Ranku's punch, as he looked pathetically at her.**

**"C-Cecile. I-I-" she smiled brighter, barly ****able to keep herself in check. To her disappointment, she failed. A tear squeezed its way through her lashes and slid, unwarrented, down her cheek. It dripped off of her chin and Lloyd's eyes became wider, his lips parting as he tried to form the right words. He took a step forward and reached for her but Cecile stepped away stealthily and slid the folders into his grip instead.**

**"I was going to give these**** to you in the lab. I forgot all about it!" The slight quiver in her voice gave way to the fact that it was a lie. The folders contained nothing of importance to him. ****  
><strong>**"Now," she continued, "I've got to go. I promised my mom that I'd call and wish my grandma a happy birthday." that was yet another lie but she had no other ace to play. She wiped the offensive tear from her chin and smiled again. Lloyd stood frozen to his spot and watched as she turned on her heel, not wanting him to see her break down.****  
><strong> 

**"Cecile! W-wait.****.Wait." she turned back ,slowly, to face him. The files were on the ground. She turned her attention to Lloyd again and watched as he lifted an arm, stretching, reaching for her. His family appeared behind him, his brother staring at the ground, a frown on his face, his father's disappointed face in her periphrials, and his mother just sneered. The bitch.****  
><strong>**"D-don't- please don't leave." Lloyd's mother frowned. Her son, Earl Lloyd Asplund, was ****_begging_****.**

**"Lloyd. Don't waste your time with this-"**

**Lloyd spun around****, glasses glinting and hands fisting at his sides.**

**"You've done enough!**** If it wasn't for you I wouldn't be in this mess! I wouldn't have said those things." everybody was silent, his mother stood with her mouth fallen open in a very unladylike fashon.**


	3. Regret

**The entire family ffell silent, Lloyd's mother gaping at her son. Finally, o****ne word broke the silence.**

**"Lloy****d." an almost inaudible whisper from between Cecile's lips made Lloyd turn to her. He cautiously stepped forward and reached out for her again but her hands came up to hold his forearms, stopping him from embracing her. The scientist's eyes grew sad again but he didn't stop trying to embrace her, placing his hands on her shoulders and trying to pull her closer, into his embrace.**

**"You****…you wouldn't have said those things if you didn't mean them or thought them. No-nobody can force you to say something like that about somebody you've been with for so many years..." Lloyd's grip on her shoulders tightened as she tried to pull away again and his eyes clenched shut, his head turning to the side.**

**"No!" it was a harsh whisper "No. Cecile! Please, I don't mean any of those things. I don't want to hurt you." he came closer, ignoring her resisting hands. "Cecile." his voice was strained and cracked saying her name. **

**"I know." ****Said she, her voice raising a bit as she smiles up at him a bit, tears in her eyes. "I know you say you don't mean it but deep down I feel that I really am a nuesence to you. And you feel it too...I was kinda surprised though. You've always thought of people as just another part of your expeariments. Like Suzaku and Lancelot. I guess I've always know that this day would come but I just..." she trailed off again, her demeanor crumbling, and her tears falling hot and fast over her cheeks. "I just never expected it to hurt like this." she said between sobs. She lowered her head, her bangs shielding her eyes.**

**Lloyd just shook his head, panicked ****by her tears. His family was looking on in an almost pitying state, his mother finally understanding exactly why the girl was with her son now. Lloyd shook his head harder as she began to pull away. He tried to follow her, still reaching and Cecile did take his hand for a moment. She pressed it to her cheek and turned her nose into his palm, ciolet eyes slipping open and looking up at him gently. Lloyd's heart began to pound faster as the light danced around her and her realized how beautiful she was. He was about to put his other hand to her face but she pulled back abruptly. **

**Her soft voice reached his ears. ****"I'll see you tomorrow." He watched her go, contemplating chasing after her. His heart beat fast and it almost felt like it was cracked in half. He felt a little better knowing that she would be there the next day but he felt the panic rise again, his heart raced, and his palms became clammy. He felt his brother's hand on his shoulder and he looked up, eyes pathetic.**

**"****It's going to be okay." He said. Lloyd gave him a disbelieving look and he let out a strangled laugh. "I know it doesn't seem like it now but I know you. And you'll find some way to get her back." Lloyd just bowed his head and quietly asked his family if they were ready to head to his house for the night. They all nodded silently and followed him.**


	4. Closet Discussions

Lloyd watched Cecile out of the corner of his eye as he talked to his family. She wandered around the lab like she normally did but she looked tired, dark bruise-like circles beneath her eyes. Finally, when she walked past them again, he stood and followed her, stepping in front of her and grazing a hand over her shoulder. She kept her eyes on the ground and stepped around him. His family watched, his mother particularly interested, as he followed her. She stopped at her desk and rifled through the documents before moving towards a back room of the lab. He stepped in behind her and closed the door with a firm click. He watched as her back straightened and approached her silently. Standing behind her, he lifted a hand and gently grazed it over the arch of her back. Her shivers slid through her body and she jumped a little. Lloyd slowly slipped one arm around her before wrapping his other arm around her waist. He pressed his forehead into her hair and gave a pitiful sound.

"_Please_ look at me." He pleaded miserably. Cecile hadn't so much as glanced in his direction since the incident two days ago. His mother hadn't spoken to her again unless she was to thank her for one thing or another. He had to hand it to his mother. She knew how much the incident had hurt them and she tried her best not to be snobby to his now emotionally fragile assistant. But Cecile would just nod and walk away quietly, never once making eye contact with any of his family.

Cecile sighed and slowly turned around in his arms. She leaned her forehead into his chest and slowly opened her eyes.

"I just...what else is there to say Lloyd?" He tightened his grip around her.

"What do you mean Cecile?" She sighed and laughed very softly, brokenly.

"Lloyd…this...incident...has changed how I view...us. Our entire relationship. I always new I would never be...important to you-" Lloyd attempted to interrupt her with a startled word but she lifted her head, glistening eyes, stopping him from speaking.

"Please don't try to deny it. I just never thought that…words such as those would ever leave your lips. Now I know that my skills aren't what you've been looking for and I just…I _wish _I had known earlier." Cecile slowly inched herself away from Lloyd and slipped out of his arms, treading cautiously back until her back hit the wall. She quickly lifted her head with a bright, watery smile and eyes glittering with tears.

"I would have been able to leave so much easier when I wasn't in love with you Lloyd." Lloyd felt his heart thump harshly in his chest and his eyes went unfocused for a moment at her words. Love. love…LOVE. A word that Lloyd had never really taken notice of in his life. Cecile took this opportunity so swiftly leave the back room.

The Asplunds all stood when Cecile emerged from the back. She wiped at the tears on her cheeks and bowed to them, a smile on her face. She spoke in a teary voice, sniffling a bit.

"It was very nice to meet you all and I'm terribly sorry about myself. I truly hope that I didn't ruin your visit." And with those words, she grabbed her purse and fled. Lloyd reappeared some 15 minutes later, dragging himself out slowly and retreating to his desk and solitude. He never once answered his family's inquiries and they watched as he either scribbled furiously at something or stared off into space, his normally vibrant and intelligent eyes vague and listless as his thoughts seemed to be on replay.

'…love…what is it exactly?'


End file.
